


A Change in Velocity

by MrToddWilkins



Category: Space Cowboys (2000), Space Explorers RPF, Sweet Valley High - Francine Pascal
Genre: Alternate History, BAMF April Dawson, Best buds, Delta rockets, F/M, International Space Station, NASA gets two extra Shuttles after Endeavour, Nursing, SSTO, Shuttle-Mir, Smol Grace Oliver, Space Tourism, The 90s, high society - Freeform, no April you can’t just invest in the Roton no matter how cool it looks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:48:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28306305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrToddWilkins/pseuds/MrToddWilkins
Relationships: April Dawson & Winston Egbert, April Dawson/Michael Harris, Grace Oliver/Michael Foale, Jerry O’Neill/Mandy Farmer, Maria Santelli/Logan Bruno, Olivia Davidson/Ken Matthews, William “Hawk” Hawkins & Sarah Holland, Winston Egbert/Chloe Murphy





	1. September 28,1989

SCHMITT NAMED NASA ADMINISTRATOR 

By James Hedley, editor 

NASA officials announced yesterday that former astronaut and senator Harrison Schmitt,55,has been named the newest administrator of the space agency. Schmitt,a geologist by training,flew on the Apollo 17 lunar mission in December 1972. That mission was the last Apollo lunar landing,although the Apollo program continued through the Skylab and Apollo-Soyuz Earth orbital missions.

Schmitt said in a press conference that he thinks he's ready for the job. "I've supported manned spaceflight for many years,both as an astronaut and on Capitol Hill. Space is a mysterious place,and it's waiting to be explored." Since Schmitt being NASA Administrator would create a conflict of interest with his present position,a special election will be held in December to determine the fate of his Senate seat.

This year,NASA has demonstrated in full its comeback from the Challenger disaster of 1986. So far three Space Shuttle missions have been flown in 1989,out of a total of five since STS-26 last autumn:a TDRS satellite deployment,the launch of the Magellan Venus orbiter,and a classified mission. Three more are scheduled during the year:another classified mission,the deployment of the Galileo Jupiter orbiter and atmospheric probe,and the retrieval of the Long Duration Exposure Facility satellite. In August the Voyager 2 space probe performed the first Neptune flyby,crowning its career after successful flybys of Jupiter in 1979,Saturn in 1981,and Uranus in 1986. At Venus,the Pioneer Venus orbiter has been deorbited ahead of Magellan's planned arrival in August 1990.


	2. Chronology:October 1989-February 1990

October 18-23,1989 - STS-34 (Williams,McCulley,Lucid,Baker,Chang-Diaz). Deployed the Galileo spacecraft on its mission to Jupiter and conducted pharmaceutical experiments.

October 27,1989 - NASA disseminated an RFP regarding potential contracts for two additional Shuttle orbiters to supplement Endeavour. At the time,Endeavour was planned to make its debut in late 1991.

November 9,1989 - the fall of the Berlin Wall.

November 12,1989 - President Bush authorized NASA to begin looking into the idea of Soviet cooperation on the planned Space Station Freedom.

November 18,1989 - a Delta II rocket launched the COBE satellite from Vandenberg AFB to study the cosmic radiation background.

November 22-27,1989 - STS-33 (Gregory,Griggs,Musgrave,Thornton,Carter). Fifth Shuttle mission for the DoD, deployed a classified satellite.

December 6,1989 - the third launch of an Energia rocket set a record by inserting 23 satellites into orbit in a single launch (Cosmos 2074-2098). The Kvant 2 science and logistics module (launched on November 26) docked to Mir.

December 18,1989 - the launch of STS-32 was postponed until January 9,1990 to allow for additional checks of the Space Shuttle Columbia.

December 31,1989 - the first Commercial Titan launch positioned the Skynet 4A satellite in geostationary orbit.

January 9-20,1990 - STS-32 (Brandenstein,Wetherbee,Dunbar,Low,Ivins). The Leasat 5 satellite was launched and the Long Duration Exposure Facility retrieved.

February 8,1990 - Galileo flew by Venus to gain velocity on its way to Jupiter.

February 11-19,1990 - Soyuz TM-9 (Solovyov,Balandin) launched to the Mir space station,docking the next day. Solovyov and Balandin relieved the previous crew (Viktorenko,Serebrov) who returned to Earth on Soyuz TM-8.

February 28-March 4,1990 - STS-36 (Creighton,Casper,Mullane,Thuot,Hilmers,Holland) oversaw the deployment of a classified satellite.


End file.
